Contents

Under the best circumstances, terraforming is a tough, dangerous task that pits the hardiest of pioneers against an unforgiving environment. When the terraformers on the planet Paradise fall behind schedule, CommanderRiker is given temporary leave from the USS Enterprise™ and sent to assist.

Riker's replacement on the Starship Enterprise is a volatile officer named Stone whose behavior soon raises questions about his ability and his judgment. Meanwhile, Commander Riker has become enmeshed in a life and struggle with Paradise's brutal landscape. However, he soon learns that not all of the planet's dangers are natural in origin – as he comes face to face with Paradise's greatest danger and most hideous secret.

"The transporter is the great equalizer... And I'm in charge of it all. Y'see, to me, everybody is just molecules, that's all. And nobody's molecules are more important than anybody else's."

- Chief O'Brien (p. 102)

"You're judged on your handshake. The handshake was originally a way of making sure your opponent wasn't carrying a weapon. But it's also a way of showing that you can defend yourself without a weapon."

- Quintin Stone (p. 45)

"At the Academy they taught us the Picard Maneuver. If your trick had failed and destroyed your ship, it would have been called 'The Picard Blunder' or 'Picard's folly'. Success forgives everything."

- Quintin Stone (p. 139)

"When you go outside procedures and it blows up in your face, you're an idiot. When you go outside procedures and it works, you're an original thinker"

- Quintin Stone (p. 139)

"He would have played by the rules, and perhaps the ambassadors would be dead, and Ryne would still be in power, but at least the rules would be satisfied."

This novel, fairly uncommonly, has an original character (Commander Quintin Stone) as one of the protagonists, the other being Riker.

It should be noted that some of Stone's traits are similar to those of Mackenzie Calhoun from the Star Trek: New Frontiernovels – including his facial scar, checkered history and disrespect for authority.

Starfleet executive officer, Commander Riker's "replacement" during his assignment, the real purpose of his presence on the Enterprise is to receive some discipline under CaptainPicard. Rising through the ranks of Starfleet, he was considered intelligent, charismatic, and potentially an excellent leader – one of Starfleet's best and brightest. More recently, however, he has proven to be disrespectful of authority, scarred (figuratively and literally) and probably psychopathic (this last term describes most of his actions). If Capt. Picard and CounselorTroi can't set him on a more useful path, it is likely that his days in Starfleet will be short-lived.

The character of Quintin Stone, a scar-faced maverick, is reincarnated in one of Peter David's later series – the character of Mackenzie Calhoun in Star Trek: New Frontier shares a large number of character traits with Stone.

Federation starship. Quintin Stone was serving on the Moniter three years earlier.

Nimitz

Federation starship, commanded by Captain Andrew Borjas. First officer was Quintin Stone, until his reassignment to the Enterprise.

Ianni

planet in the Roze system, trying to join the Federation. A coup d'état took place while a Moniter away team led by Quintin Stone was on the planet three years earlier. Atrocities were committed during the coup. Stone wasn't allowed to intervene due to the Prime Directive. These events made him the borderline lunatic he is today.

Paradise

Definitely a misnomer for this inhospitable planet. Paradise is best described by the term "frozen wasteland". Commander Riker is chosen for this assignment partly due to his upbringing in Alaska, the other being the need to rotate in a "problem officer" in his place on the Enterprise.

Starlight

The city of the terraformers on Paradise. So far, it is the only place on Paradise where weather conditions are generally tolerable. Venturing outside its limits is highly dangerous. This is compounded by the fact that the usability of transport, scanning and communication equipment is severely limited on the rest of the planet.

Wild Things

Part wolf, part husky, all survival. These dog-like beasts (one is depicted on the cover) were genetically engineered specifically to survive Paradise's harsh conditions. When they were declared a failure, they were to have been destroyed; however, the majority of them managed to escape, with dire consequences. The Wild Things are dedicated to a pack mentality: though there is no naturally occurring food source on Paradise, the pack nonetheless survived by cannibalizing its weaker members.